GREENWOOD, IN - Rose-Hulman regained control of the HCAC men's basketball race with two wins last week. The Engineers (15-4, 10-2 HCAC) pulled out a 68-66 overtime win over Anderson and capped off the week with a 58-54 victory over Defiance, completing the season sweep of the second place Yellow Jackets.

Senior Alec Houpt (Chesterton, Ind./H.S.) led the Engineers during the week, averaging 17.0 points and 6.5 rebounds per game, while shooting 76% from the field. Houpt scored a career-high 24 points with seven rebounds against Anderson, then tallied 10 points and six rebounds in the win over Defiance.

Rose currently holds a one game lead, including the tie-breaker, over Defiance with six games remaining on the schedule. Hanover and Mount St. Joseph sit two games back of the Engineers.

RHIT will hit the road this week, visiting Earlham and Manchester.

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Defiance (14-5, 9-3 HCAC) earned a split last week, knocking off rival Bluffton prior to Saturday's loss to Rose. DC beat the Beavers 62-53 behind a game-high 23 points and eight rebounds from Mason Roth (McComb, Ohio/H.S.). DC will travel to Anderson Wednesday prior to a home date with Mount St. Joseph Saturday.

Hanover (12-7, 8-4 HCAC) fell two games behind Rose in the standings following a 1-1 week. The Panthers beat Mount St. Joseph 58-57 on Wednesday, but fell at home to Bluffton 76-66 Saturday afternoon. The Panthers will face Franklin and Earlham on the road this week.

Mount St. Joseph (11-7, 8-4 HCAC) entered the week tied for first place, but suffered two setbacks to fall two games back in the race for a league title. Following the one point loss at Hanover, the Lions dropped a 78-73 decision at Earlham in overtime. The Lions will look to snap the skid against Transylvania and Defiance this week.

Franklin (9-10, 6-6 HCAC) climbed into the fifth position in the race for the HCAC tournament with a 2-0 week. The Grizzlies beat Manchester 81-74 and pulled out a 62-60 overtime win over Anderson. Sophomore forward Dion Smith (Indianapolis, Ind./Franklin Central) posted a double-double in both wins, highlighted by a career-high 26 points against the Ravens Saturday. For the week, Smith averaged a team-high 23.0 points, 11.5 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 3.5 blocks, and 3.0 steals per game.